Leak-preventing seal



D 9, 1930. M. MAsTERsoN ET AL 1,784,104

LEAK PREVENTING SEAL Filed Feb. 23, 1926 Patented Dec. 9, 1930 UNITEDSTATES PATENT oFr-lca *y j MECKLEY HASTERSON AND OBVILLE MABXEI, 0FCHICAGO, ILLINOIS LEALPBE'VENTING SEAL y application mea February as,1926. serial No. 90,000.

not satisfactory. In fact it is practically im-l 15 possible to providea shaft that will run erfectly true, that is a shaft having an asolutely true center or axis of rotation throughout the length. Where apacking gland is employed any eccentricity in f the shaft will 20 makean opening through-the packing larger than the diameterof the shaftitself. Consequently the packin does not pack or bear uniforml on the saft and leakage results.`

The resiliency of the packing material itself 25 will not compensate forsuch eccentricity, es-

pecially where the speed of rotation of the shaft is fairly high.Furthermore in devices of this sort the packing must be frequentlyrenewed.

The object of our invention is to more effectively prevent leakage alongthe shaft or other rotating part and to this end we provide for sealingthe shaft without the Vuse of packing and more particularly by animproved liquid seal.

Another object is the rovision of a device of this sort that mayconveniently embodied in existing structures and a generally improvedand slmplied construction that 40* may be economically roduced andconveniently substituted for the packing glands now customarilyemployed.

According to our invention we direct any leakage radially from theperiphery of the 1' shaft and we seal the radial path b an annularliquid seal. The sealing liqui may be suitably carried, as by means of acasing mounted on the shaft and it is thrown into sealing positioncentrifugally upon rotation 19 of the shaft. We also provide forreturning the sealing li uid to thebottom of the casing'` when the sha tis stop ed and for withdrawing any leakage from t e casing as desired'.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which j jFig. 1 is an axial section through a seal embodying our invention,showin a shaft sealed thereby and a casing from Vw ich the shaft'prgjects 1g. 2 is a similar view showing the device partially inelevation and arranged on al vertical shaft and Fig. 3 is a verticalsection taken on the line 3`3 of Fig. 1.

Y Referring first to Fig. 1 the shaft 5 projects throu h a bore oropening 6 provided in the casing which may be the casing of the pump,turbine or other device with which the invention is employed. The casing7 is shown as recessed or counterbored at 8. This counterbore 8 may berelatively shallow or it may be the usual stuidng or packing box Y nowcommonly provided where packing glands are employed.

Fixed upon the shaft 5 to rotate therewith is a casing 10 comprising twoparts 11 and 12. The art 11 has a hub or sleeve 13 which may be s runkor pressed u on the shaft at 14 or otherwise fixed upon t e'shaft forrrotation therewith.v Extending radially from the sleeve 13 isadisc-like wall 15 which'may be dished to provide a marginal flange 16.

The other part 12 has a similarfco-operating marginal flange 17 andtheopposing surfaces of the flanges 16 and 17 are finished off normal tothe` axis of shaft 5 and clamped tightly together at 18 and againstliquid leakage therebetween. `The wall 19 of part y12 is inclined toparallel the correspondingly inclined or slanting surface oreave 20provided on the stationary disc 21v and which guides thelow ofthesealing liquid into the annular or circular cavit or pocket 23 formed onpart 12, as b provi ing a rolled back formation about tlie inner edge ofwall 19.

The stationary disc 2l has a hollow sleeve or hub 25 which may looselysurround the shaft 5 and has a radial flange 26 adjacent but spaced fromits inner end. The inner projecting end of the sleeve 25 fits in thecounterbore or stuffing box 8 and the ange 26 the casing surface ofwhich may be finished off normal to the axis of shaft 5 is clampedtightly and in a fixed position to the body or casing 7, as by means ofsuitable bolts 28.

The inner radial surface of the casing part 11 lies substantially normalto the axis of the shaft 15 and substantially parallels the adj acentradial surface of the stationary disc 21 with a space 30 therebetween,through which space 30 the sealing liquid employed is conveyed to thebottom of t-he casing 10 when the shaft stops turning.

In use the sealing liquid, preferably Inercury is introduced into theannular or cir;-

cumferentialpocket defined by casing parts 11 and 12. Vhen the device isstarted Vand the shaft 5 rotates, the casing rotates with it and whenthe casing revolves at a proper speed the sealing liquid 35 is t-hrownor distributed in an annular ringaround-the inside ofthe casing tosubstantially the depth Ya-a annularly thereabout. lVhen the shaft and.

casing are rotating with the liquid 35 in its annular position about theinside of the casing the edge or margin of the stationary disc 21extends about its periphery into this annular liquid ring so that anyleakage from the space 30 to the space between the inclined wall'19 ofpart 12 and the adjacent surface of disc 21 would have topass throughthis annular liquid ring which thereby forms a liquid seal andpreventsrany leakage along the shaft from escaping therefrom when theshaft is in action.

lVhen the. shaft is in motion the annular ring of liquid 35 liespartially in the space- 30 and partially in the space between the casingpart 12 anddisc 21 and whenfthe shaft stops turning the liquid .isconveyed through space 30 and through the space between part 12 and disc21 and pocket 23 back to the bottom of the casing 10.

Shaft 5 may pass relatively loosely through the sleeve 25 of the disc 2land any leakage that occurs along the space 40 to the space 30 betweenthe casing part 11 and the disc 21 may be withdrawn through an opening42V in the stationary disc 21 and a pipe or conduit 43 leadingtherefrom. The conduit or pipe 43 may return this leakage to the suctionside of the pump at 45, for example where the in vention is embodied ina pump, thereby equalizing the. thrust at` the suction end of the pumpand automatically preventing contact and friction between the disc andthe casing. The line (7J- b shows substantially the level of the liquidseal when the shaft 5 is not rotating.

The device shown in Fig. 2r is substantially identica-l with thatshownin Fig. 1 and the parts are therefore designated by primedreference characters corresponding to those employedfin Fig. 1. Inthiscase, however,

the device is shown partially in elevation and upon a vertical shaft, inwhich case when rotation of the shaft is stopped the sealing liquid 35is dropped into the pocket 23 which is now disposed at the bottominstead of at one end as before. In operation the liquid 35 as before isthrown out centrifugally and formsan annular sealing ring about theinside of the casing 10.

From the foregoing it will now be apparent that we providean effectivesealwithout the use of packing material and that the device is simpleand adapted to be conveniently embodied, in place of the packing glandsnow in use by simply inserting the inner projecting end of the sleeve ofthe stationary disc 21 in the usual stuffing box and clamping the flange26 tothe casing 7 withthe other tion. n

Te do notintend to be limited to the precise details shown or described.

7e claim:

ln combination, a housing having a recess, a horizontal rotatable shaftextending there; from, a Vsleeve surrounding the shaft, said sleevehaving a radial flange attached to the housing and a hub extendingY intosaid recess, a disc projecting radially from the sleeve, and a casingmounted upon saidY shaft and peripherally surrounding said disc, saidcasing being adapted to hold a liquidseal and permit disposal of same inan annular ring about the interior of said casing and aboutv theperiphery of the disc upon rotationv of the shaft, together with meansfor automatically returning leakage from the housing into the radialspace back to the housing.v

. In witness whereof, we hereunto subscribe our names this 18th day ofFebruary, 1926.

MECKL 4 Y MASTERSON ORVILLE MARKEL.

parts in their proper associated rela-y

